Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[whirly]

Speaking of suction, do you flail owners regularly see loads of clippings on the mower and debris in the air when mowing? My Mott SHD88 came with no shields, so I made some. The debris is awful when mowing over some month-old cuttings like I did today. But messy any time. Here's the front of the mower when I got done about an hour today: View attachment 475567 And here's the shield I made a few years ago: View attachment 475568
The mower is on the ground in the pic. The rear shield is similar and clears the ground by about 4", closer than the front. The mower cuts very well (fine cut w side slicer pairs) but the airborne grass clippings are a pain on an open tractor. What do you guys experience? Jim

My Mott 72 w/ side slicers has the same debris on top after mowing. I have a rubber shield on the back similar to the one you show but none in front.

As you can see in my avatar my tractor is as open as it gets and it gets some of the same debris on the back by the PTO. Actually, I never thought twice about it.

 

[Steave]

May I ask a question on this thread since I am now a flail mower owner. You folks have been dragging me along for a long time and I'm sure you been wondering what the extra weight was. Got an old Mott 72 several weeks ago, put in some new cuttershaft bearings and enjoying how it cuts. I took the advice and go slower than when using my finish mower (6' Landpride) or my rotary cutters (5' Woods & 5' Howse) yes I have an arsenal against the weeds and brush around here.

My Mott Mower is set up to run with the cutter shaft rotating the same way as the tractor wheels are turning or it'll also run in reverse by rotating the gear box to the other side. The knives are 2 sided so it wouldn't matter which way they rotated. The question is: are there any reason to run it with the knives rotating opposite than the tractor wheels are turning. The knives would then be cutting and throwing clipping toward the tractor. I've seen them set up both ways on Youtube. Here's a couple of pix on how mine is set up. It does fine the way it is just wondering why it was built to be changeable.

I'm of course new to the flail mowers and it would honor me to join the Flail Nation if you'all will have me. :cool2: The next thing I'm in line for joining is the silver sneakers program at the retirement home. I'm sure at some time or another the answer I'm seeking has been discussed somewhere in this thread. While I haven't read the entire thread (but most of it) sure have enjoyed it. Thanks.

 

[leonz]

Hello Steave,

I want to welcome you as the newest member of the Flail Mower Nations. As you know we are a happy bunch and are quick to help the lifelong residents of the Flail Mower Nations.

No annual dues or taxes are required to be paid to become a resident of the Flail Mower Nations and
no passport is required to enter the Flail Mower Nations at its beautiful beer garden entrance.

 

[Fallon]

Most flails run "forward" with the tractor wheels. After you mow a bit, look at the knives, the cutting side will be a bit more shiny & polished than the trailing edge.

 

[Steave]

Thanks leonz for the welcome.

Thanks Fallon for the information. I see most are set up like mine and running the way you said. I saw one set up reversed (I guess you'd call it) and had the wide hammers on it. The cutter shaft was different, it had less stations. I'll probably just leave mine as is and was just wondering if there was ever a reason to run it reversed.

 

[Arc weld]

Reverse rotation(opposite of tractor direction) gives a nicer cut on grass that is regularly maintained. Sod farms that used Mott Interstators had a fine cut cutter shaft and reverse rotation. I would think it would chop up the clippings better because it would throw them in front to be run over again. In taller grass reverse rotation would likely use more HP and not leave as nice a cut because the cuttings were thrown in front making the grass even thicker.

 

[Steave]

Reverse rotation(opposite of tractor direction) gives a nicer cut on grass that is regularly maintained. Sod farms that used Mott Interstators had a fine cut cutter shaft and reverse rotation. I would think it would chop up the clippings better because it would throw them in front to be run over again. In taller grass reverse rotation would likely use more HP and not leave as nice a cut because the cuttings were thrown in front making the grass even thicker.

Yep I could see where that makes sense. Since I'm going to use it on farm roads, food plots, and the large part of yard it'll probably serve me better leaving it like it is. I was surprised at the nice cut it put on the yard compared to my finish mower its as good or better but I have to go slower to achieve this.

Mowing the farm roads is fairly slow anyway and so many different kinds of weeds and grass mixed is where this mower out performs the others. The green grasses and the dried stems are all cut smoothly. I know its just a farm road but if you're going to cut it you might as well try to make it look nice too :thumbsup:

 

[Reg]

Reverse rotation(opposite of tractor direction) gives a nicer cut on grass that is regularly maintained. Sod farms that used Mott Interstators had a fine cut cutter shaft and reverse rotation. I would think it would chop up the clippings better because it would throw them in front to be run over again. In taller grass reverse rotation would likely use more HP and not leave as nice a cut because the cuttings were thrown in front making the grass even thicker.

On the contrary, (so called) reverse rotation throws the clippings up and over, leaving them behind and allowing the next stems to be cut clean.
Similarly forward rotation also throws them up and over (in front) which gets them mulched - at the expense of cleanliness of cut.

Awww, just mow backwards to prove this to yourself - same tractor, same mower, same operator, same field, etc - change just ONE variable at a time.

This is NOT the same as reverse rotation roto-tilling - where we see similar logic put forward.
Clippings are LIGHTER and they FLY better than dirt, the blades turn faster than tiller tines.

 

[Steave]

On the contrary, (so called) reverse rotation throws the clippings up and over, leaving them behind and allowing the next stems to be cut clean.
Similarly forward rotation also throws them up and over (in front) which gets them mulched - at the expense of cleanliness of cut.

Awww, just mow backwards to prove this to yourself - same tractor, same mower, same operator, same field, etc - change just ONE variable at a time.

This is NOT the same as reverse rotation roto-tilling - where we see similar logic put forward.
Clippings are LIGHTER and they FLY better than dirt, the blades turn faster than tiller tines.

It does mulch the clippings to smitherings no windrow whatsoever. A few places around the farm roads I tried backing under some low limbs and it don't cut very well while backing. I assumed that was because the roller would be mashing the grass down before I get to it. As soon as I pull forward it cuts good. I haven't tried the backing up in a clear spot where I can actually tell what is going on. Dodging limbs and backing up makes it hard to see whats going on back there.

I'm not sure if I even have it set up right. I have parts lists and repair info but not an operators manual. I read on here to make the height of the cut using the back roller adjustment. My Mott 72 don't have the slides on each side so I just let the 3pt hitch keep it off the ground about 1" just enough to keep it from sliding on the ground. I also read somewhere that said to raise the cutter bar to full height with the back roller then use your 3 pt for adjusting the height of cut. The way mine cuts I can't be to far off as it does a nice job. I'd like to get the best looking cut when cutting what I call the extended yard (the part not cut with the lawnmower). I'll keep playing with it and see what happens as I've got plenty to experiment on. If anybody else needs to experiment with their mower just bring it on over.

 

[CCWKen]

On the contrary, (so called) reverse rotation throws the clippings up and over, leaving them behind and allowing the next stems to be cut clean.
Similarly forward rotation also throws them up and over (in front) which gets them mulched - at the expense of cleanliness of cut.

Awww, just mow backwards to prove this to yourself - same tractor, same mower, same operator, same field, etc - change just ONE variable at a time.

This is NOT the same as reverse rotation roto-tilling - where we see similar logic put forward.
Clippings are LIGHTER and they FLY better than dirt, the blades turn faster than tiller tines.

Ditto 100%.
Mine cuts much better with the tractor going forward than in reverse. Going forward means the grass is cut at the base like a rotary cutter. Going backward, the cutters are chopping down at the grass.

I get confused every time someone tries to explain "reverse rotation". The cutting edge on my flails face forward when at the bottom of the arch. When the tractor is moving forward, the cutting edge is also moving forward just like any cutter with a blade. Why some refer to this as reverse rotation is beyond me. This should be called forward rotation, don't you think? Otherwise all lawnmowers or any rotary cutter is also cutting in "reverse rotation". :confused3: